James Derham

James Derham (also known as James Durham; May 2, 1762 1802?) was an American physician and emancipated slave who was the first African American to formally practice medicine in the United States. Despite practicing medicine he never received an M.D. degree.

Biography James Derham was born into slavery in Philadelphia in 1762. As a child, Derham was transferred to John Kearsley Jr., under whom Derham studied medicine. From Kearsley, Derham learned about compound medicine focusing on curing throat illnesses, In 1788, Derham and Benjamin Rush, a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence, met each other in Philadelphia, and corresponded with one another for twelve years. Dr. Rush had been so impressed by Derham's paper on diphtheria that he read it before the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. During the yellow fever epidemic of 1789 in New Orleans, it is said that Derham "saved more yellow fever victims than any other physician," losing only 11 of 64 patients. Derham's final letter to Rush in 1802 is the last record of his existence. By 1789, his practice is reported to have made about $3,000 (approximately $ in ) annually. It is believed that after the Spanish authorities restricted Derham to treating throat diseases in 1801, Derham left his practice in New Orleans.